"Harro! Harro! Harro! Harro!"

Blog 10

Today found me back in the classroom for some training and by luck, I found myself in rather a nice training (conference room in a central hotel) - it even has its own set of private squat toilets for the people in the room. With regard to the squatters, it's amazing how quickly you slip back into the routine of using them. It was Japan since I last used one (and only then in the countryside when it wasn't one of the ones with a Starship Enterprise control panel attached) but the skill of squatting down and avoiding ones trousers doesn't seem to leave you. Thank goodness, eh? Look, here's a picture of one for you. Note the lack of door on the stall. Not really necessary though, are they?

But back in the training we went and what an enthusiastic group we have here in Wuhan ("shout 'Wu!' for Wuhan!"). They were quite getting into all the communicative tasks and even endured my powerpoint presentations. I might even risk alienation and try a joke on them tomorrow. Maybe leave it for a day or two more.Lunch was a delightful spaghetti in tomato ketchup in a neighbouring coffee bar and it was followed up by a coffee - my second in two days. As I normally manage a single coffee every two months or so, I find myself 'buzzing' at the moment. This may explain the shaky-hand syndrome when I tried to take a picture earlier - could barely make out a thing. Goodness.

So the local neighbourhood. The hotel is in a lively, authentic area of Wuhan with a variety of water melon shops, live chicken stalls, wheely-barrow vendors with green things on them and old people playing Mah Jong (sp?). Taking pictures isn't so easy in this situation as, being the only pale face around, one tends to attract a fair amount of attention and even streams of young children shouting "harro!" a you. I think this was called 'grass-roots internationalisation' when I was in Japan. Others would call it 'restrictive'. Unfortunately, just saying "hello" back doesn't cut the mustard. I think they'd only be satisfied if they saw pure western blood running through the gutters. Anyway, evading the kids I managed to get this picture from afar of my local road. I know it's a bit shit as it's far away, but if you zoom in, you get the idea. Notice the eaters to the right and I think you can make out a water melon to the left.

Just a little further down from you there's a temple and lake combo. The pair of pagodas (pictured) juxtapose the cityscape interestingly, wouldn't you say? And do note the bamboo scaffolding round them. Good to see they're still doing their best to limit food for those pandas. But then they are jolly foolish creatures for only eating such a ridiculous foodstuff, aren't they?

In a final picture for today, we can see a set of terraced houses just opposite the hotel. They're above a garage or something but the two floors are augmented by a roof terrace for drying clothes and things. This kind of pad would go for half-a-million in Fulham, being described as a city villa in need of minor renovation, but here, yours for a snip at 3 - 5,000 pounds, depending on the availability of running water. Property speculators, get your skates on!